19/06/2023
Coalition for Freedom of Expression and Content Moderation Launched in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Creating a Free and Healthy Online Environment for Citizens
The ceremonial launch of the Coalition for Freedom of Expression and Content Moderation in Bosnia and Herzegovina was held on June 19, 2023, at the UN House premises in Sarajevo. The coalition, founded as part of the UNESCO project Social Media 4 Peace, aims to encourage the cooperation of civil society actors, institutions, the academic community, experts with social networks and other technological companies that have a great influence both in BiH, as well as other countries.
The primary focus of the Coalition, as stated by Siniša Šešum, head of the UNESCO office in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is the creation of a free and healthy online environment for all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the promotion of peace through digital technologies, especially social networks.
“The Social Media 4 Peace project is a concrete step in strengthening the global partnership between the European Union and UNESCO in order to strengthen societies’ resistance to potentially harmful content that spreads online, especially hate speech that incites violence and division,” said Šešum.
“Unverified information and hate speech erode our democracies and often pose a great threat to human rights and reconciliation,” said the head of the European Union Delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the EU’s special representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Johann Sattler. “Freedom of expression and media freedom are fundamental pillars of democratic societies, crucial for the protection of human rights and the promotion of good governance. These are also key areas that BiH should work on on its way to the EU. However, freedom of expression should not mean the freedom to spread false information that can harm the rights of other people and that can be misused to incite hatred, intolerance or violence,” Sattler said, adding that he was glad that the EU supported the Coalition and that civil society organizations societies are working on it.
Stela Vasić, adviser at the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said that hate speech and incitement to physical violence are unacceptable. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, a law on online content is being prepared that will deal with these issues as well, said Vasić.
One of the organizations that joined the Coalition is Mediacenter Sarajevo, whose Executive Director, Maida Muminović, said that social networks and technology companies do not devote enough resources to the moderation of hate speech, nor do they pay adequate attention to the local context, culture, and languages in Bosnia and Herzegovina when moderating harmful content, leaving room for the negative consequences of such content. “The Coalition will be committed to advocating towards social networks for a more adequate and transparent management of harmful content, at the same time advocating for the protection of freedom of expression and the promotion of peace through digital technologies, especially social networks,” she pointed out.
The Coalition’s memorandum of understanding was signed by 18 civil society organizations, academic institutions, journalist associations, self-regulatory media bodies, media associations, activists, organizations for media and digital literacy, human rights activists and internet experts. Similar coalitions have been formed in other countries where the Social Media for Peace project is implemented – Indonesia, Kenya and Colombia. The project is implemented with the support of the European Union.